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Reviews are starting to trickle in for the hotly-anticipated Forza Horizon 4, which is due to arrive on the Xbox One and PC on Tuesday 2nd October. The lavishly-realised motoring game takes place entirely within a ‘shared world’ digital UK, and offers different gameplay opportunities depending on the time of year. (Although I can confirm that, as a seasoned UK resident, you need to dress for every conceivable season just to cross the street, so good luck drivers.) What do the Forza Horizon 4 reviews say though? Is the game going to be worth your hard-earned coins…?

Well, love it or hate it, Metacritic is a great way to get a general flavour of how a product is being received, and at the time of writing Forza Horizon 4 has a Metascore of 90 for the PC version, and 92 for the Xbox One. So I think it’s safe to say it’s not terrible.

IGN gave the game an impressive 9.6, saying that it “retains almost everything that made Forza Horizon 3 the best racer in its class and bakes it into a game that doesn’t ever want you to stop playing. The stunning visual quality and sound design, the massive array of automobiles, and the extensive and completely customisable career mode that have become hallmarks of the Horizon series are all here.”

GameSpot was also full of praise for the title, giving it a 9 out of 10 and noting the “breathtaking” realisation of Britain’s rolling countryside and “hilly streets.”

The reviewer added: “Horizon‘s Britain cycles between summer, autumn, winter, and spring – and the weather in each season affects the world in tangible ways. These range from the obvious, like bodies of water freezing over, to the near-imperceptible, like the change in temperature affecting your tires… In the first few hours of Horizon 4, the seasons will change after you’ve completed a number of activities, and this quick cycle reveals how necessary it is to consider and adjust your driving.”

GamesRadar+, meanwhile, was a little more reserved, giving the title 4 out of 5 and criticising the fact that the game’s menu options lead to the Microsoft Store, whilst also noting that the Fortnite influences in the emotes are “cringe-worthy.” That being said, the reviewer confessed to having “great fun” with the races, and he thought the world’s four seasons looked “beautiful.”

Attack of the Fanboy also arrived at a 4 out of 5 for its Forza Horizon 4 review. The reviewer noted the game’s high quality visuals and slick gameplay, but did indicate that the series was starting to feel a little stale. “While Forza Horizon 4 continues to meet the high bar of expectations that other entries series has set [sic], it’s hard not to have a little bit of franchise fatigue at this point… The problem is, the industry hasn’t moved that far forward in the last few years, leaving these games feeling like marginal upgrades. I suppose that not all people will have this franchise fatigue, but I’ve certainly started to feel it with Horizon 4, even if it’s still easy to admire for its high level of quality.”

These niggles aside, the overall consensus from these Forza Horizon 4 reviews is that it’s a high quality game that’s unlikely to disappoint. But with so many other high profile titles already waiting on the 2018 release roster, are you tempted to partake in a slice of motoring madness? (I’ve written a handy guide to managing your gaming wallet for the remainder of 2018, and you can find it here!)

If the answer is a resounding “yes!” click here to order your copy of Forza Horizon 4 on the Xbox One and help support this website.